Who were the DNC protesters and what did they want?

During mass demonstrations, it's the most extreme and violent incidents that usually garner the most attention. This was certainly true during last month’s Democratic National Convention, when the most heavily covered protest events – by both the mainstream press and the activist media – involved arrests or police acting badly.

Lost in the news cycle is the context for why these throngs were out in the streets in the first place. This is particularly true for the anarchists, whose history and philosophy is largely unknown to the general public who mostly see dirty kids with bandanas.

So what motivated the anarchists and thousands of other protesters to march against the Democrats? Ask Matt Nager.

Another common sight at the protests was a crew of documentary filmmakers clad in bright yellow shirts led by Todd Cassidy of Hi-Fi Fusion. The Austin-based media company has started the editing process on the hundreds of hours of film they took for a full-length film on the DNC protests and its many, many characters. Hopefully, the whole world will be watching. -- Jared Jacang Maher